Writing
Someday soon this will be a list of my published work. However, my recent published work includes only a few online articles (ComfortCafe.org, Helium.com, and RedBubble.com). All of my previous published pieces were either so long ago I don’t remember the name of the magazine or publisher, or they were articles for a newsletter that I edited for my former employer, a software company.
I’m working on a couple of long projects (Of course! WHY be focused?). The one closest to my heart is called “Wayfaring Strangers.” It only recently gave itself a name. Don’t you hate stupid working titles when you KNOW the project is much better than that? I’m so relieved that it took itself seriously enough to name itself. However, it still hasn’t decided what it is going to be when it grows up. It started out as a series of related but separate short stories or vignettes (See! It wasn’t even sure about that). But the more these stories develop themselves, the more the whole project seems to be morphing into something entirely different. Knowing me, this project won’t fit into any particular “popular” genre, so I’ll either be a trendsetter, or published posthumously, or …. well, nevermind the other option.
Another project I’ve been working on is also in constant flux. Some time ago, I wrote a “chapter” that needed to go somewhere with a character that was too lively to ignore. Her name is Jessi Monroe. She was sitting on a page for several years minding her own business until I read her to one of my critique groups, and everyone liked her sense of humor. Jessi’s first UNFINISHED novel was apparently a lighthearted thriller. But before getting past chapter two, I plopped Jessi into another novel that was supposed to be a mystery. Instead, during the month of November, when I took the National Novel Writing Month challenge to write a 50,000-word novel in 30 days, the book decided that it was really a stage play. So that’s what I’m working on now…stage left.
I’ve always fancied myself a bit of a writer, even though I don’t do any. I started out with ‘the big plan’, and now, some decades later, I tickle myself with soundbites and t-shirt ideas. About 3 years ago, I took a memoir class at the local CC, and I wrote some witty, complicated stories about my ordinary, crazy life. The first, and my favorite was about finding my beloved, though hermitic, destitute, alcoholic father dead in his apartment, and the ensuing days of truama as I arranged the transportation of his remains to his hometown for burial in a rural, turn of the century church cemetery between the two homes of his childhood. I entitled it “Independence Day”, and I am sure someone with a more refined voice could have done it more justice, but it was exercise of love and respect, of which I remian proud. There were several others, all with much greater titles than content – in keeping with my life long mastery of false advertisement. Another, was “The Valley, The Shadow, The Death”, and it was about my adolescent struggle with anorexia, and another was about my eventual attempt at mental heath treatment, in my 20’s – as I recall, it owund up being more of a romantic farce/ memoir about all the troubles I’d had with women and how I went into the hospital to escape a marriage, only to wind up in another relationship… I think it was entitled “Boy, Interrupted”, which I know is kind of like stealing, but it was hardly publishable, becasue, apart from the fact that is sucked, literarally, that is, I didn’t change any names and I can’t even find a copy of it. I still think I’d be a decent writer, if I could just live up to my titles…
Well, Philo… first of all, thank you for commenting on my blog. I’ve enjoyed reading your comments. In fact, it’s obvious to me that you are, indeed, a writer. It’s also obvious that you spend more time listening to the devil on your shoulder naysaying you than you listen to your authentic, creative, quite worthy self. I challenge you to tell that devil to just “SHUT UP.” And keep on writing. We all write a lot of “junk”… but if we keep writing, the pearls trickle out…. It’s like filling a dirty garbage can with water… to overflowing. The garbage at the bottom has to come pouring out before the clean, refreshing water comes. So stop being hard on yourself. Just write! And everytime you hear that voice saying “you’re not good enough…. why do you even try?” remember that it’s just a little good-for-nothing crapcaster that knows NOTHING. You are smarter, brighter, more creative, and more profound than any silly negatory voice.
Thank you for your adivce and affirmation. I know that what you say is true, and I am not afraid of hard work, but I am obviously afraid of something, which is most disagreeable to the man whose perfection casteth out all fear…
Anyway, I was hoping that you would respond, as you seem to be a person I would enjoy knowing, but only so long as you would enjoy it, too, as I am no weird groupie or hanger-on.
I am sorry for your illness, though I am pleased that from it you have chosen a bright way for yourself – that is God’s purpose in allowing the challenges we face, not so much to test, but to bless and enrich. I know the process quite well, being as I am, a recidivist.
I guess that is all for now. You tell me, is this the proper forum for correspondence – or wait, do you mind some correspondence, I suppose should come first, and if so, is this the proper forum…?